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NOTE: This column is a living document. I'll be updating as needed after team press conferences, imaging reports, Monday Night Football injuries, etc. Major changes to the content will be noted in red. I'll also be retweeting any key pieces of news and my own reaction and analysis, so make sure you're following @JeneBramel and checking my timeline on Twitter throughout the week.
INJURY ROUNDS
aaron rodgers | hamstring strain | week-to-week
Rodgers grabbed for the middle of his left hamstring after returning to the huddle following a scramble in the third quarter Sunday night. He was obviously limited afterwards, releasing most of his passes from the pocket and showing little of his usual elusivity when pressured.
Non contact hamstring strains like this are often borderline Grade 1/2 injuries. But Rodgers has a few things going in his favor here. First, he reached for the middle of the muscle belly in his hamstring rather than lower and toward the knee where the muscle becomes a tendon. A muscle belly injury can be easier to rehab. Second, although one of the more mobile pocket quarterbacks in the league, Rodgers does not entirely rely on his explosiveness and lateral agility to be effective. He's less likely to be held out if he's less than 90%. Finally, he'll have an extra full week of treatment and rehab with the Packers on bye in Week 9.
Rodgers said he would miss no time in his post-game press conference. I suspect he'll be much more stiff and sore on Monday, but I wouldn't bet against him playing in Week 10.
gio bernard | hip | day-to-day
Bernard got up favoring his right leg after what proved to be his final carry of the day. There were no television replays of the injury, which seems to have occurred as he was pulled down from behind and had a defensive lineman land across his upper leg. It's not a clear mechanism for a hip pointer and there's no video evidence of a non-contact injury suggestive of a mid-high grade muscle strain.
Bernard gave an extended interview at his locker after the game and there's seems to be no concern about the hip from the team. This is the Bengals, however, and injury information is both sparse and misleading in most cases. There isn't anything here making me worry about Bernard's Week 9 availability, but it's something to track closely until we see him back at practice.
le'veon bell | ankle injury | day-to-day
The video mechanism on Bell's right ankle injury isn't conclusive. It's not a classic mechanism for a low ankle sprain, but it's not consistent with a high ankle or midfoot sprain either. The sideline exam clearly focused on the outside of Bell's ankle, the method of taping suggested a low ankle injury and the Steelers were not concerned enough to take Bell to the locker room for x-rays before clearing him to return. All of those factors -- in addition to Bell finishing the game without incident -- are reassuring signs we won't be hearing about a more concerning condition for Bell this week.
jordan cameron | concussion | week-to-week
Cameron was forced from Sunday's game with a concussion and will have to be cleared through the protocol this week. Cameron was concussed late in both the 2012 and 2013 seasons and didn't return to play. It's possible the Browns were exercising extra caution with Cameron in both instances, as their Week 17 games were not critical to a playoff push. But the history of multi-week absences with concussions for Cameron in the past suggests it's smart to prepare for the possibility of the same in this instance.
brian quick | arm/shoulder | week-to-week
Quick landed on his left shoulder while finishing a catch on Sunday. He immediately grabbed for his upper arm and had his wrist and elbow supported by the Rams' medical staff as he walked off the field. St. Louis would not provide an update on Quick's condition yesterday and Quick himself didn't want to speculate after leaving the locker room in the sling.
While it's possible Quick suffered a bony injury of some sort to his upper arm, I think the mechanism of injury, method in which his arm was supported and the sling make a shoulder dislocation the most likely injury. That's a multi-week injury, with the timetable dependent on the extent of the damage around the joint capsule and cartilage and presence of any fractures around the shoulder. I expect Quick to have an MRI today to better define the injury, but I believe he'll be out at least 2-3 weeks if my speculation about a shoulder dislocation proves correct.
1215 ET: Adam Schefter reports Quick's injury is indeed a shoulder dislocation:
Rams WR Brian Quick has a dislocated shoulder and torn rotator cuff and is likely done for the season, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 27, 2014
The torn rotator cuff confirms additional soft tissue damage. Although not reported, there may also be labral damage involved. That makes it difficult to speculate on how long Quick will need to recover and what he'll need to overcome to be effective again next season.
doug martin | ankle | week-to-week
The television broadcast cut away immediately after Doug Martin was tackled on his final carry Sunday. He driven backwards over his lower body by Anthony Barr. While there was no clear view (or replay) of Martin's lower body, the way in which he was turned backwards often includes an injury mechanism consistent with a high ankle sprain. Will Carroll shared with me on Twitter a report Martin had significant amounts of swelling after the game. That would be concerning for a possible fracture. The Buccaneers did not update Martin's condition after the game, but I'm not optimistic about his availability this week.
FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENTS
a.j. Green | sprained toe | week-to-week
I'm going to recap the news on Green over the past seven days, but I want you to ignore it.
Marvin Lewis said early in the week Green had made "significant" progress. But Green didn't take a single practice rep, instead working on his conditioning on a side practice field. Green reportedly said yesterday he was 40% last week and 80% this week. Those are arbitrary numbers that mean little. All current indications, most notably from Green's mouthpiece Bob Holtzman at ESPN, are that Green will be back for Week 9. But, in the same breath/tweet/report, those indications also often acknowledge Green's toe injury is likely to limit him for the rest of the season.
Here's what I think you should take away from the past two months.
We know Green has a significant toe injury he has aggravated three separate times. We know it's worrisome enough he needed to visit multiple specialists and surgery was, at the least, discussed before being decided against. We don't know the specifics of the injury, but there are enough snippets to guess that it's a painful ligament injury around his big toe but may involve nearby structures. We know the injury hasn't fully healed despite Green doing very little football related activity for three weeks.
I think two things are certain here. First, like Andre Ellington, if Green is to play this season, it's going to be with a painful injury. Second, when he does play, he'll do so with a risk of aggravation.
There's reason to be optimistic this week. Green has made progress and it appears the medical staff has designed an orthotic they believe will help take the pressure of the injured area. But I'm not buying any report saying Green will return to play until we see him practice on consecutive days. Hopefully, it happens this week.
calvin johnson | high ankle sprain | day-to-day
As had been hinted for weeks, the Lions chose to hold Johnson out through their Week 9 bye. I don't expect we'll see Johnson practice during the bye week, but I'll be surprised if he doesn't increase his practice participation and improve his conditioning to prepare to play Week 10. Expect to see him back on the field and very close to his usual self then.
reggie bush | ankle | week-to-week
I wasn't confident enough to speculate on Bush's injury after watching it on video. There was reason to be concern about either a high ankle sprain or a bone bruise. After Bush's aggravation in Week 7, the scales tipped heavily toward a high ankle injury and it's no surprise that Bush didn't practice much before choosing to rest through the Lions' Week 9 bye. Watch Bush's practice participation closely. It'll be a very positive sign if he's cleared to run and practice this week, but I don't expect we'll see Bush on the practice field until next week.
ryan mathews | mcl sprain | week-to-week
rashad jennings | mcl sprain | week-to-week
Week 9 may have been the week both Mathews and Jennings were targeting as a return date, but it's no lock either will be ready. Neither did much in practice last week and are still early in the re-conditioning phase of their rehab and recovery. Tuesday and Wednesday are important days for both running backs. If cleared to run and increase conditioning workload, there's a chance we'll see them back at practice and cleared for contact by the end of the week. I think we're still at least a week away from seeing either being healthy enough to take 15+ touches in a game situation. Jennings has the benefit of an extra day to practice, which increases the likelihood he'll be ready to play.
robert griffin iii | subtalar dislocation | week-to-week
We're now five weeks into Griffin's recovery. It was always optimistic to believe Griffin could return in 4-6 weeks, but his quick return to conditioning and individual drills in recent weeks was promising. This week is critical for Griffin. If the Washington training staff feels his foot is stable and his conditioning is good, Griffin has a chance to play in Week 9. If there's any concern, however, expect the team to choose to rest Griffin through their Week 10 bye and give him a full two months of recovery time. We'll know which way they plan to go during practice this week. If Griffin is taking first team reps on Wednesday or Thursday, it's a sign they've designed the game plan with him in mind.
reggie wayne | elbow | week-to-week
The Colts have said very little about Wayne's injury. The mechanism was consistent with a subluxation -- not a full dislocation, but a near slippage of the bones out of joint. A player at another position may have been able to brace and play through a hyperextension injury like this, but it's difficult for a receiver. The limited catch radius and the higher risk of aggravation are serious concerns. Don't expect to hear anything official from the Colts this week. Early week practice reports will tell us if Wayne's injury is more serious than this and how likely it is he'll return to play in Week 9.
AROUND THE TRAINING TABLE
I'm also watching for updates on Pierre Thomas (shoulder), Khiry Robinson (arm), Darren Sproles (knee), Owen Daniels (knee), Fred Jackson (groin), and Montee Ball (groin). Thomas and Daniels are expected to miss another week and it's too soon to expect Jackson or Ball to return to practice. Sproles can be expected to return -- unless it was an aggravation in practice last week prompting the late week swtich from optimism to pessimism.
We may also hear more about Stepfan Taylor (calf), Nate Washington (AC sprain), Cordarrelle Patterson (foot/ankle), and Geno Smith (shoulder) in Monday press conferences.
Though it looks like the Eagles could get both Evan Mathis and Jason Kelce back soon, there were more offensive line injuries of note this week. Jake Long (ACL) is done for the season. Matt Slauson (pectoral tear) likely is out for the season, too. The Packers will hope to get T.J. Lang (ankle) back after their bye week.
While the linebacker position seems to have been spared for a week, both Lamarr Houston and Nick Fairley suffered potentially long term knee injuries. Jimmy Smith (foot) and Vontae Davis (knee) also left their games with injury. There's much less optimism with Smith, whose mechanism of injury was concerning for a midfoot sprain. Patrick Peterson is in the concussion protocol.
I'll be updating this feature throughout the day. Footballguys Insiders will get a full update with additional fantasy perspectives on Wednesday, with analysis of the week's game-time decisions early Sunday morning. Follow me on Twitter @JeneBramel for breaking injury news and analysis throughout the week.